Reflections
by Mako-clb
Summary: Zoicite reflects on his lives, both old and new, as he is purified by the Silver Crystal.


Author's Notes: This story is based on events from Act 9 of the Sailor Moon manga (as translated by TokyoPop). For those that don't know, this is the issue where Sailor Moon is revealed to be Princess Serenity and the Silver Crystal appears. Also, in the manga version, Zoisite is already dead. This story is told from first-person POV.

This story is loosely connected to my other stories, Final Moments and Before the End, but it can be read on its own.

Disclaimer: The Sailor Moon manga was created by Naoko Takeuchi, and I thank her for creating such wonderful characters.

**Reflections  
**by Mako-clb

I feel the warmth first, though how I feel anything when I am dead I don't know. Next I see a brilliant silver-white light.

Then the memories come.

They say your life flashes before your eyes just before you die. Instead, my life, all my lives, flash before my eyes as I return to life.

I remember the day I was selected for the research team assigned to investigate the unusual magnetic readings in the arctic. I remember feeling an instant connection to the other three men assigned to the expedition and a strange sense of deja vu and nervousness when I met the read-headed woman who was leading the team. I remember the lies she told, the offers of glory and fame. I remember the promises we made it return, the foolish decision we all made twice.

I remember the day I was promoted to one of Prince Endymion's personal guards. And, I remember the strong friendships I forged with the other Kings of Heaven. I also remember the day I met Princess Serenity and learned of the Silver Millennium—for good and ill, it was the day my fate and the fate of Earth changed forever. Endymion was already hopelessly in love with the moon princess by the time Kunzite and I discovered he was secretly meeting with her. It wasn't long after that when Serenity's own guardians learned of her trips to Earth. Considering how often Endymion and Serenity would sneak off to meet, it's no surprise that we interacted quite a bit with the Sailor Soldiers. To protect Endymion, we needed to learn about them and Serenity, but eventually we Kings of Heaven came to respect the Sailor Soldiers, and even love them.

Strangely enough, it was Nephrite who fell in love first. The man had been quite the playboy before meeting Sailor Jupiter. It wasn't love at first sight. It happened slowly, as he sought out other women less and Sailor Jupiter more often. But, it was clear that before Beryl, before things went so terribly wrong, Nephrite had fallen for the jovian warrior and she cared for him.

Jadeite was next to fall in love. Or, perhaps I should say the next to have his love returned. Jadeite fell for Mars immediately. It took quite a bit longer for her to warm to him.

Kunzite, well, I doubt Kunzite ever loved anything or anyone more than his duty to our prince and our kingdom. But, even he grew to like and respect the Sailor Soldiers. He and Venus would often discuss battle tactics as they watched over their charges.

To me, the most beautiful of Serenity's guardians was Mercury. I admired her intelligence and how her demur nature hid a warrior's heart. She was pretty when she smiled and adorable when she blushed. I've always been a bit of a prankster, and I enjoy teasing others to get a rise out of them. Kunzite used to say it was my worst quality. I became so much worse around Mercury, like some immature boy who could only show his true feelings through taunts and teasing. It got so bad that for a time Mercury refused to stay on Earth if I were assigned to guard Endymion. My prince scolded me terribly for that, reminding me that Serenity was forced to leave when her guardians left. Endymion rarely gave us orders, but he ordered me to act like an adult and forbade me from playing any pranks on Serenity's guardians. I followed my prince's orders from that moment on, but I never could find the courage to tell Mercury, or anyone else, how I felt about the soldier of ice.

I suppose I'm luckier than Nephrite and Jadeite. The last memories they have of the women they love are of being killed by them. As the silver-white light fades, and I feel my newly formed flesh melting away, I decide that I am the unlucky one, for my last memory of Sailor Mercury is the done where I end her life. And, my last memory of my new life is of trying to kill the woman my prince loves.

I have betrayed Endymion and my planet twice. I deserve the death that is reclaiming me, but at least now I can die free of Metallia's taint and Beryl's control. It is more than any of us deserve.

_The End_


End file.
